Tubular or sleeve-like braces are very well known in the prior art. Elastic braces have been used for many years as knee braces or elbow supports. Such braces provide some degree of support to the joint of the person who wears the brace while that person is engaged in an activity that requires or results in significant or repeated flexing of the joint. For example, support braces of this type are frequently used to provide support to individuals having injured or degenerating knee or elbow joints. Additionally, support braces may be effectively worn on a healthy joint to stabilize, guide, and warm it during vigorous activity. Ideally, such braces are constructed and arranged so as to provide satisfactory support to the joint and surrounding ligament system while providing the highest possible wearing comfort. During the last several years, many different configurations of braces have been developed and utilized in an attempt to provide adequate knee or elbow support.
Notwithstanding recent developments and advancements in support brace design, further improvements in design are desired. For example, designers of prior art support braces have not been able to develop a brace that provides satisfactory support while including only a minimal number of requisite components. Instead, it is common in the prior art to require numerous bulky or intersecting components in order to achieve the desired support. One example of a brace of this type is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,492,227, Senn et al. issued, Jan. 8, 1995, which describes an elastic knee brace comprising an elastic tube which fits around the knee. This tube includes three distinct elastic sections (a top, a middle and a bottom), each of which provides different support and compression characteristics to the knee. The brace includes stabilizing strips which run diagonally from the top of the brace and run underneath the kneecap. The stabilizing strips are made from a bi-directionally elastic material and their purpose is to provide rotational stabilization to the knee.
Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 3,934,583, Hollingshead et al., issued Jan. 27, 1976, describes an elastic support which may be used for either knees or elbows. The support contains an elastic foam sleeve which fits around the joint. The support includes two strips of nylon-backed foam material which extend diagonally across the support. The two strips cross just below the kneecap. Because these strips have less elasticity than the rest of the support, as a result of their nylon backing, they provide resistance to flexing of the knee. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 3,945,046, Stromgren, issued Mar. 23, 1976, describes an elastic knee support which is held in place by multiple elastic straps crossing diagonally over the support (going both over and under the kneecap). These straps are provided to add both lift and support to the kneecap when they are in position. Further, U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,171, Schlavitto, issued Nov. 21, 1972, describes an elastic knee brace which includes rigid planar stays located on each side of the kneecap, as well as two straps which run diagonally from the top to the bottom of the brace crossing just below the kneecap. The straps are not flexible since they are made from leather or a leather-like material. The purpose of these straps is to both support and protect the kneecap.
Thus, it is clear that a need exists for an improved brace for supporting a knee or an elbow joint. Such a support brace should be capable of providing adequate compression and support while efficiently comprising only a minimal number of parts to achieve the desired support in a more comfortable fashion. Additionally, such a support brace would be able to be manufactured from fewer parts in an economically more efficient and more productive manner.
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to overcome the above described limitations and disadvantages in the support brace prior art.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a support brace capable of providing adequate compression and support while efficiently comprising only a minimal number of parts to achieve the desired support in a more comfortable fashion.
It is still another object of the invention to provide a support brace capable of being manufactured from fewer parts in an economically more efficient and more productive manner.
Additional objects, advantages, and other novel features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description that follows and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned with the practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.